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10.09.2012

When someone gives you chocolate, you eat it

A little over one week ago I got the email most vegans dream of.

Someone fabulous from Vegan Cuts wanted to know if I'd be interested in reviewing some of the products that appear on the website. Needless to say, after I got done jumping up and down on my bed, I immediately said "heck yes!"

What is Vegan Cuts you might ask? Well, if you're not hip to it yet, you will be after this, trust me. It's a website that offers a wide range of vegan products, from beauty to food items, usually at a "special offer" rate. Think like a morally-charged spin-off of Groupon or Woot for vegans. Who said vegans didn't have a place of their own?

As if being offered to review stuff wasn't awesome enough, I soon received an email that said the first item I would get to review would be chocolate. Dark, organic, gluten free chocolate from a little company known as Brooklyn Dark. (Apparently you all have been listening when I talk about my love of anything sweet. Oh who am I kidding, I love anything that has to do with food).

Before I indulge about how absolutely delicious this stuff was (and trust me, I'm not just saying this because it's a review), I have to shout from the rooftops what made me fall in love with Brooklyn Dark.

Not only are they environmentally sound and loaded with awesome things like hemp, sesame seeds, sunflower seeds and cranberries, they're pretty straight forward when it comes to their stance on why their chocolate is vegan: "Dairy is harmful to humans and to the animals involved in its production. We at Brooklyn Dark seek to maximize good decisions to help make society more humane."

The company currently offers four different chocolate bars: Moroccan Spice, Open Sesame, Orange Silk and Classic Hemp. Weighing in at a little over two ounces each, they all contain 63% cacao, no preservatives and are 100% vegan. How do you not fall in love with an ethically sound company?

The best part? Being moral actually tastes as good as it feels, particularly when it comes to this product. Even more exciting than this? Vegan Cuts is offering a Brooklyn Dark Chocolate Sampler deal at 30% off the normal price.And if that's not generous enough, you can save an extra 10% off your order (not valid on shipping) by entering the discount code "BLOGFRIEND" when checking out through October 31, 2012. (See, who said it didn't pay to be a reader of Chubby Vegan Mom?)

You'll be lucky enough to receive all four of these flavors, because honestly, you'd have a hard time picking which one to get. My favorite was hands down the open sesame bar, which had the same rich, dark chocolate bar the classic hemp flavor offered, but had a fair share of sesame seeds poking through the super gorgeous exterior. Think a more sophisticated chocolate crunch bar.

Chubby Vegan Dad and daughter each preferred the classic hemp flavor, although orange silk was a close second. While the classic hemp bar is smooth and rich throughout, the orange silk bar has surprise pockets of orange, cranberry and sunflower pieces throughout.

And seriously, you don't want to forget the moroccan spice bar, which was by far the most unique of them all. This bar is for the person you can never find the right gift for. It's dark chocolate which seems more refined and gourmet by nature, but with spices like black pepper and cumin mixed in, it makes for an awesome experience and a chocolate flavor you've never had.

Before Chubby Vegan Dad and daughter wolfed down all of my classic hemp bar, I was able to use some of it to make my VeganMofo crock pot inspired hot chocolate. Be forewarned, this is not your run-of-the-mill hot cocoa. This is rich and amazing and will probably ensure that you never make the regular old cocoa powder variety EVER again.

Directions:
Plug in your crock pot and turn the settings on low. Stir in creamer, whipped cream and almond milk until fully blended. Add chocolate chips/shavings and stir. Cook this mixture on low for two hours, coming back to whisk every 15-20 minutes.

This recipe is perfect for family gatherings when you're going to be serving oodles of hot chocolate to kiddies or adults (I don't judge). Instead of splashing it all over the stove you can just plop these ingredients into your crock pot and check back periodically. Minimal fuss and minimal mess.

Once it's blended turn your crock pot to warm and enjoy a cup of super fluffy, frothy hot chocolate with your favorite garnish, whether it be more vegan whipped cream or vegan marshmallows.

4 comments:

Im so ready for hot chocolate season! It hasn't gotten that cold here yet, but I cant wait until it does! I never thought to try the differnt chocolates, and dark chocolate is healthy and good for you, right?